TRAIL LEADING TO SUMMIT
Wednesday, April 15, 2015
LeConte Lodge sits up at about 6,400 feet and is the highest guest lodge in the eastern United States. Morning comes early here at the lodge. At about 7:45 am one of the staff members goes around to each cabin and knocks with a friendly reminder for the 8:00 am breakfast in the dining hall. At 8:00 am the bell rings calling everyone down for a scrumptious breakfast. And surprisingly we felt really good, considering our hike up yesterday.
Tim and I were seated with the same folks as we had for dinner the night previous. Already at the table was a very large platter stacked high with pancakes. Everyone dug in. Then right when we were about done with the pancakes here came large platters of scrambled eggs and ham and a basket of biscuits. Oh gzzzz . . . Wish I had known. Kinda full now. Yum!
After breakfast was polished off and since it was still raining Tim and I spent the morning in the office at the lodge. The office check-in cabin also has a large lobby area with a few tables, games, books, chairs and numerous rocking chairs surrounding a large heater in the center. It's a great place to hang out, socialize and read. We spent our time reading and learning local history of LeConte Lodge and the surrounding Great Smoky Mountain National Park.
After we ate our lunch and since it was now a light rain Tim and I decided to go on another hike. I didn't come this far and not make it to the summit. The lodge is not at the very top, to reach the summit you need to hike almost another half mile up. High Tops is considered the true summit. You know you've reached it when you arrive at the very large cairn. The largest we have ever seen. At 6,593 feet this summit on Mount LeConte is the third highest peak in the Smokies. It can be considered the tallest mountain in the Eastern United States if measured from its immediate base in Gatlinburg to its highest point.
While out on this hike we took a gander at the hiking shelter located up here, wandered a little bit past the summit and on our return to the lodge we took a side trip out to Cliff Tops. This is the best place to view the sunsets . . . not today. The best place for a sunrise is Myrtle Point which is located a little ways past the summit.
The medic arrived this morning around 1 am. He was able to administer morphine and monitor the gentleman with the blown hip replacement. The weather still has not cleared for a fly out and does not look good for the remainder of the day.
A dinner of beef tips and mashed potatoes was delicious. Tim and I were seated with a different group of people this evening. So much fun listening to everyone. We had a professor of physics and astronomy, several physiologists, a teacher and an attorney and banker from New Zealand. Again great and interesting conversations. Of course we all talked about the Hillbillies who wandered through camp early this morning. Loved hearing the New Zealander attorney mimicking them. LOL!
After finishing late in the dinner hall due to the great dinner company Tim and I returned to Cabin 4 for the last time. We needed to get our backpacks ready for the journey down tomorrow.
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